"Wayne is not for sale. He is a Manchester United player and will remain a Manchester United player," he told reporters.

"I have known Wayne since he was 16, when he was at Everton. It is a little bit of deja vu. He is training really well, he is coming back in good shape and I am looking forward to working with him."

Moyes is the first new manager as Old Trafford for 26 years and added he is keen to work with Rooney after being unveiled as Alex Ferguson's successor.

He added: "I've had several meetings with Wayne. He's training brilliantly well, he's come back in good shape and I'm really looking forward to working with him.

"We have spoken several times and as far as I've seen it, whatever happened before has gone.

"We are working together now. I see a glint in his eye, he looks happy and if he is saying I'm going to knuckle down and get it right - let's not kid ourselves.

"He's a terrific player and let me reiterate, he's not for sale."

Asked about a previous meeting between Ferguson and Rooney, Moyes distanced himself from it and suggested the England striker could become United's highest ever goalscorer.

"There was a private meeting between two people and I was not privy to that. I'm now looking at it in my period at Man Utd," he said.

"I'm really looking forward to working with Wayne and getting him to the levels I know he's capable of. I can tell you categorically that Wayne Rooney is training very well.

"If I was Wayne, you look at the legends that have played for this club. I could see George Best, Bobby Charlton, Roy Keane and I thought Wayne isn't too far away from that.

"It's not too difficult to get the goals and he could be near to that."

(Image: AFP)

Meanwhile, when asked about the possibility of Cristiano Ronaldo returning to the club, a coy Moyes said: "I will not speak about players that are contracted to other clubs, but this club is always interested in the best players."

Moyes added that he asked Paul Scholes about becoming a coach along with former team-mates Ryan Giggs and Phil Neville, but the midfielder is taking some time off to spend with his family.

"I felt the right person was Ryan Giggs and he has been great," he said.

"He has been on his Uefa pro licence course – and after two days you can see how incredible a footballer he is – he is taking steps forward and to get him and Phil Neville together is great.

"I am driven and hungry to succeed and I am determined to get that first win on the board.

"The people at the club want continuity and longevity. They do things the right way."